FDX- Approach question
 

Hey Fedexers,

Question for you- I remember reading a thread well over a year ago about hand-flown CAT III approaches at Fedex- am I remembering correctly?

Thanks

They're not done. Is that what you remember?

At least for a few more years until the HUD's with the FLIR enhanced vision system are installed. Could be seeing hand-flown Cat III's after that.
But for now, coupled, auto-land only to Cat III capable runways.

A long time ago we use to do hand flown approaches to 100 feet in the sim as part of recurrent training. I wonder if that's what dundem was thinking about?

MG2

Thanks for the replies.

I vaguely remember a 727 driver mentioning hand-flown Cat III approaches...I guess it could've been in the sim only. I searched, but didn't turn up anything.

They were testing HUDs in the 727s in the 80's. That's why the speakers were in weird places on some of them. They had to be moved to install the HUD. Captain's side only, of course.

We (UPS) WERE flying hand flown CatIII approaches to a DA of 100 feet (700 RVR) with the HUD in our 727 100s. Worked like a champ: just keep the thing inside the thing type flight director. I'm an old hud cripple from my previous life, so it all made sense to me.

I flew two actual hand flown Cat III approaches in the 72. Both worked out GREAT! Nice off the shelf system.:cool:

"We (UPS) WERE flying hand flown CatIII approaches to a DA of 100 feet (700 RVR)"


We call those Cat II at FedEx

Hand flown to 100 ft used to be part of the type ride. I believe the FAA did away with it and that's why we don't have to fly it anymore.

290kts,

He has to be referring to Cat III by definition. By basic FAR/AIM definition, a Cat II can't go lower than 1200 RVR, although we know from OPS Specs that it can go down to 1000RVR with autoland. To get a number as low as 700, they had to be doing a CAT III, they just had to make the decision on whether or not the airplane was going to land where it's supposed to at a higher altitude than we do probably because they were hand flying it.